I have recently completed the Diabetes Management program and have been following the time limited intermittent fasting with a low carb diet approach, which is starting to help me lose weight, and hopefully my hba1c will have reduced at my next blood test.
What I’m wondering is whether I will be limiting the hours of eating for the rest of my life or will I be able to reduce the number of fasting days once I’m back in a better weight range, or for short periods like holidays, if I stick to low carbs?
Good morning, and thank you for your question. It is great to hear that you are starting to see some benefits from the changes you have made so far too!
Generally speaking the approaches on our programmes are intended to be things that you follow long-term, with the overall intention being to help you find a lifestyle that not only works for you but that fits in with your needs and preferences. However, there is no reason at all that you cannot reduce the number of fasting days for specific periods or once you have met your health goals, if that is something you would like to try.
The important caveat though is that you should continue to monitor your health (focusing on whichever markers you care about most) if you do make changes of this nature. This will help you to gauge whether any changes you make have a significant negative impact, which will help you make informed choices about what you want to do going forwards. For example, if you reach your target weight and decide to reduce the number of fasting days you have each week, but then regain a lot of weight, then you may decide that you want to increase the number of fasting days again.
Ultimately it is about finding the right balance between an approach that allows you to meet YOUR health goals whilst being able to enjoy your lifestyle. There are no hard and fast rules, so you can change things as and when you want to try and achieve this. There may well be some trial and error, but that is okay too!
Hopefully that helps, but let me know if you have any other questions or would like any further information.
Best wishes,
Sean
Dr. Sean Wheatley, MSc, PhD.
Science and Research Lead at X-PERT Health.
Thank you, that makes sense.
